Weekly Billing Cycle

We know getting paid is important, so we work hard to make sure our billing and payment processes are as smooth and effortless as possible.

For hourly contracts, except those that use Upwork Payroll, the billing period begins on Monday and ends on the following Sunday. Your funds become available 10 days later.

When working hourly contracts, we automatically invoice all time that you log in the Work Diary to the client. The invoicing schedule is as follows:

• Week 1 — You log time using the Upwork desktop app and Work Diary
• Week 2 — Your clients receive their invoices on Monday and are given until Friday to review the work
• Week 3 — Your earnings become available on the following Wednesday

Weekly Billing Period

The weekly billing period begins Monday at 00:00 midnight UTC and ends Sunday at 23:59 UTC. Because the Upwork marketplace includes freelancers and clients from all across the globe, we base all Reports on this standardized timing.

At 12 noon UTC on the Monday following the close of the billing period, we automatically invoice clients for hourly contracts. We charge their primary billing method and send them a reminder to review the contract’s Work Diary.

Freelancer Review Period

After the billing period ends, you have a few hours to look over your Work Diary to make any final adjustments. The freelancer review period is from Monday at 00:00 midnight to 11:59 a.m. UTC.

Client Review Period

The client review period runs from Monday at 12 noon UTC following the close of the billing period until the following Friday at 23:59 UTC. This is when clients can review the Work Diary and file a dispute if there is a problem.

Security Period

To help protect everyone using the platform, Upwork maintains a security period for all transactions, both payments and refunds. It gives us time to process and clear the payments, and resolve any disputes before releasing your funds.

All manual payments, including milestones and bonuses, become available 5 days after the payment is successfully processed. A little cheat sheet:

• Processed Monday — Available Saturday
• Processed Tuesday — Available Sunday
• Processed Wednesday — Available Monday
• Processed Thursday — Available Tuesday
• Processed Friday — Available Wednesday
• Processed Saturday — Available Thursday
• Processed Sunday — Available Friday

Hourly payments enter the security period after the client review period closes on Friday. Therefore, funds typically become available on the following Wednesday.

Automatic vs. Client-Initiated Invoicing

Hourly contracts are the only contract type with a weekly billing cycle, and the hours and set weekly payments for these are the only charges that we automatically invoice for you. Miscellaneous, milestone, project, and bonus payments may also be issued on contracts, as needed. These one-off, client-initiated payments invoice immediately when clients approve milestones or projects or when they submit bonus or miscellaneous payments. We bill the funds to the client’s escrow balance (fixed-price milestones and projects) or primary billing method (all other manual payments) within 24 hours and release to you after the security period.

Delayed Payments

During the security period, the amount paid to you appears as Pending on your Transactions page. Each payment lists the date we expect it to be available. If your funds don’t become available on the expected due date, there was a problem with the payment (such as a declined card) and it’ll remain pending until your client resolves the problem. The total outstanding account balance is re-charged daily until the invoices are paid. Continued failure by a client to pay invoiced hours triggers a review to qualify for Hourly Payment Protection.

If Hourly Payment Protection is triggered, the client will be suspended and your contract will be paused until the balance is paid. When the issue is resolved, which usually doesn’t take long at this stage, the contract is automatically resumed. It often helps speed the process if you contact the client to discuss the delays and a timeline for resolution so your payment can be completed and, if you so chose, the project can continue.

Payment Protection

Invoiced hours, fixed-price milestones, and projects are covered by Upwork Payment Protection. Only bonuses, miscellaneous payments, and set weekly payments aren’t covered by these programs.